Numerical simulation of multi-component LNG pool fire

The release of large amount of liquefied natural gas from fixed or mobile equipment may induce to pool fire when immediate ignited. The prediction and simulation of this phenomenon is very complex because several premixed, convective and diffusive burning phenomena, and rapid phase evaporation, are involved simultaneously. Nevertheless, the use of Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations with k-ε model for turbulence and classical models are still adopted, although strong uncertainties and over-simplifications with respect to the real scenario. More recently large-eddy simulation (LES) modeling, as adopted in some codes as FLUENT or FDS, has been adopted. LES methodology is able to introduce more detailed information on the chemical kinetic of the oxidation reactions. Again, however, poor kinetic combustion mechanisms suitable for the implementation in computational fluid dynamic (CFD) codes, and simplified composition for the LNG - often treated as pure methane - are typically adopted. In this work, the simulation of a LNG pool fire was performed by detailed (reduced) kinetic model validated for multi-component LNG compositions by using FDS. Results were compared with both experimental and numerical analyses retrieved from literature. This approach has the potential to correctly estimate the heat radiation and the production rates of the main reaction products, including soot. Copyright © 2019, AIDIC Servizi S.r.l.